Abstract
Addressing global challenges like racial tension and health inequalities, this paper urges a reimagining of design education's core principles. Four educators from diverse, often marginalized backgrounds collaboratively investigate design education's future, moving beyond mere reflection. Their insights fuel a broader initiative to envision inclusive design education. Drawing inspiration from W.E.B. Du Bois’ 'Megascope', this concept resists conventional paradigms, sheds light on overlooked narratives, and challenges ingrained epistemologies. The Megascope acts as a dynamic discourse tool, pushing the boundaries of design education. The educators, influenced by the Megascope's principles and their backgrounds, emphasize their dedication to anti-racist, equity-driven education, underscoring the impact of diverse, intersectional academic voices. Through the reflexive process inherent to Design-Based Research this paper weaves Megascope principles with educators' unique experiences, offering a scaffold of anti-racist principles for equitable design education, providing theoretical and practical insights for ongoing critical reassessment and reimagining of pedagogical practice and design education.
Keywords
design-education; identity; equity; futures
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.1368
Citation
Thomas, N., Mercer, L., Moses, T., and Sibrian, A. (2024) Through the Megascope: Reimagining Design Education, in Gray, C., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.1368
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Research Paper
Included in
Through the Megascope: Reimagining Design Education
Addressing global challenges like racial tension and health inequalities, this paper urges a reimagining of design education's core principles. Four educators from diverse, often marginalized backgrounds collaboratively investigate design education's future, moving beyond mere reflection. Their insights fuel a broader initiative to envision inclusive design education. Drawing inspiration from W.E.B. Du Bois’ 'Megascope', this concept resists conventional paradigms, sheds light on overlooked narratives, and challenges ingrained epistemologies. The Megascope acts as a dynamic discourse tool, pushing the boundaries of design education. The educators, influenced by the Megascope's principles and their backgrounds, emphasize their dedication to anti-racist, equity-driven education, underscoring the impact of diverse, intersectional academic voices. Through the reflexive process inherent to Design-Based Research this paper weaves Megascope principles with educators' unique experiences, offering a scaffold of anti-racist principles for equitable design education, providing theoretical and practical insights for ongoing critical reassessment and reimagining of pedagogical practice and design education.